Thursday, October 23, 2014

how to reach someone

1. Write to the e-mail address you used when you last contacted him several years ago, and which is still listed on the web page you then got it from.

2. Get a bounce message.

3. Since it says, "mailbox temporarily disabled," figure it may be one of those storms that periodically hits every e-mail provider.

4. Wait a few days.

5. Repeat step 1.

6. Repeat step 2.

7. Search him on Google. Fortunately he has an unusual name. After some searching, find a likely address. Be no more than momentarily confused by the same street address appearing in various sources with the names of two roughly adjacent (from your own dim knowledge of the area) cities.

8. Do a supplementary search with his name and various forms of the place name and find a profile from the online bulletin board you know he's active in, confirming that he does indeed live in that part of the world.

9. Do an online phone directory search for his name and address. Find a phone number.

10. Call the number.

11. Get a disconnect intercept with no forward.

12. Search Google with the address. Discover from a real estate website that he recently sold the house.

13. Find no clue online as to his new address. Briefly consider looking up the phone number of the old house's new owner, to ask if they know.

14. Do, however, find another e-mail address for him. Write to that.

15. Repeat step 4.

16. Google the e-mail address and find it associated with another web page that hasn't been updated in far longer than the web page from step 1.

17 (should probably have been step 3). Write to the one person you know who is in communication with him on the bulletin board from step 8 and ask for help.

18. After a decent interval, receive an e-mail with a) yet another e-mail address, and b) an offer to ping him on the bulletin board.